Three Tips to Help Make Your MSP Security Provisions More Profitable

A Prime Opportunity

MSP security is in hot demand today because it’s increasingly requiring a level of professionalism that can’t be sourced so well internally. Cybercrime is a multi-trillion-dollar industry. Consider this: the United States has a yearly GDP that basically matches its existing debt. Cybercrime is projected to be between 25% and 33% of that number by 2021–which is floating somewhere between $18 and $24 trillion dollars, depending on how the numbers are calculated. Specifically, that’s a sum of about $6 trillion. As you may have already concluded, that’s an impact greater than many developed countries.

Such an impact indicates there are security threats designed by IT professionals working in firms that essentially represent malware/spyware/adware/ransomware startups. These groups are employing people full time for the development of hacking methods and the exploitation of successful businesses; it’s that simple. Internal techs focused on core operations can’t stand against a concerted effort by professionals who are deliberately working to undermine them.

Fire is required to fight fire sometimes— businesses need MSP security which is requisite to the threat, and today that basically means outsourcing. Businesses haven’t realized this en masse, but they will very soon, and if your MSP business is ahead of that trend, you’re going to see increased levels of profitability. With that in mind, following are three considerable strategies to buff up the level of your security provisions:

Know what the market is demanding, and what you can reliably provide

Specifically define protection solutions your MSP provides

Deliver on that which you promise to deliver

Market Demands

You need to provide technological security that matches market demands. This requires keeping your digital finger on the pulse of threats and getting ahead of them. But it’s no good providing services that you can’t properly execute. If you say you can provide continuous monitoring and support, but you can only really monitor and support clients 20 hours out of the day, odds are you’re going to have a security breach during the time you’re not “on watch.” If you can’t afford outsourcing to a vetted monitoring solution during those four hours until you can scale up, you’ll be putting your clients at risk, and yourself as well. When clients lose, you lose. So, don’t say you can do what you can’t. Understand what the market is demanding, and fulfill those demands where it’s feasible for your business to do so.

Specifically-Designed Protection

Once you understand which market demands you can cater to, and what you can reliably provide, then you want to specify that in your marketing materials, as well as your web page. If you don’t, clients are going to come to you asking for services you can’t provide in terms of security, and be unsatisfied when you don’t provide them. But you don’t see people going to an Apple store demanding Windows services. Specify what you provide and increase both consumer satisfaction, and the sort of clientele with whom you’re able to work.

Deliver

Last, but certainly not least, is delivery of services you’ve determined can be provided by your business. Just because you know you can deliver, and you’ve designated your available services, doesn’t mean you’ll automatically be successful in their delivery. This will take time, and it’s going to take a few trial-and-error attempts in situations that couldn’t be predicted for you to properly perfect your business provisions. To help diminish the struggle, look at peer competitors and see where they’ve been successful, and where they’ve failed. This will help you get an idea of what actual costs will be for certain service provisions, as opposed to projections. Simulation and reality may be near the same, but they’re never a 1:1 comparison. Murphy’s Law always makes a cameo.

Increasing Profitability

If you know what kind of MSP security needs are defining the industry, properly communicate what your MSP can and cannot do, and deliver on your promises, you’re likely to see an increase in profitability in regards to your MSP. So, do your homework and deliver.

Three Tips to Help Make Your MSP Security Provisions More Profitable was last modified: February 21st, 2018 by Bill Hogan

Bill Hogan is President of Partners Plus. A fast growing IT Support firm based in the Philadelphia area. Bill has been helping make life with business computers easier since 1981. His education as an Electrical Engineer at Penn State started a dual approach toward gaining expertise in both programming and computer networks.
In 1991 he formed Partners Plus, Inc., to provide managed IT services to companies in the Philadelphia metropolitan area, based on being a business operations ally and understanding the need to speak to company leaders in plain English rather than ‘techno-babble’. And while others tend to focus their attention on the mechanical components of a computer system, Bill and his staff take a more global approach - how a network can be best used as an integral, reliable asset to the business owner’s goals.
In 2007, after years of frustration with the sub-standard services he saw during network audits, Bill published “Hassle Free Computer Support” to educate business owners with the information they need to get superior technical support for their businesses
A firm believer in keeping current with advances in technology and processes, Bill lead Partners Plus to become a Microsoft Certified Partner in 1998 and a Gold Certified Partner in 2008. And, Partners Plus Inc. has been selected by Microsoft as being in the top 1% of Partners serving the Small and Medium Business Market on the East Coast.
Bill is internationally certified in Network Operations and is certified by Microsoft in project management and multiple Microsoft technologies. He also held the position of representative for the Mid-Atlantic region on Microsoft’s Advisory Board which manages all Microsoft Small Business certified partners.
Partners Plus provides managed it services to clients in Philadelphia and the Delaware Valley and helps them choose, implement, and manage IT and cloud solutions that are cost effective and reliable. Partners Plus’ pro-active approach to IT support is ideally suited for companies in Wilmington, Delaware or Philadelphia who depend on reliable IT infrastructure, but don’t want to spend a lot of money to keep your IT services in Delaware that way.
Partners Plus clients have come to appreciate the Partners Plus team focus on operations and the ability to get the core of problems quickly, and the knowledge of how to resolve issues as quickly as possible. With the institution of the Partners Plus Protection Program, the company can now monitor, identify and resolve many network issues in minutes without coming onsite.